Another Planet?

Have you ever been to another planet? Where nothing seems to grow and rocks formed in strange shapes dominate the landscape. Almost no sound can be heard, except of the slight whistling of the wind. Sometimes there is the rustling of a little dry bush or the gentle rattling of little rocks rolling down a hill. Animals like birds are nowhere to be found. You are surrounded by high mountains and in front of you there is a plateau, which seems to be – compared to the towering rocks – completely misplaced.

I have been to a place like that. It wasn’t on another planet, but it felt like a place far away from earth. The landscape I have described is the one around the volcano Teide in Tenerife which we visited two days ago during our stay on this Canary Island. Walking through this unique scenery was a breathtaking experience.

From the harbour in Santa Cruz we got by bus into the mountains of Tenerife. On our way we stopped three times to enjoy the view and get some information about our surroundings. We learned for example why the bark of most of the trees is black: because of the frequent forest fires the trees developed a special bark that can withstand the heat of the flames. Due to that the tree does not die during a fire and a few years later the only sign left is the black tone of the bark.

During Clemens’ presentation about volcanoes we learned something about the development of Tenerife and the Teide. Long ago the Teide did not exist but there was a bigger volcano in its place. The ancient volcano collapsed into a huge caldera and with the following eruptions the Teide was slowly built in that caldera. Whenever the mountain spit lava into the sky another layer of melted rock covered the old one. Since the Teide is way smaller than the old volcano, there is a flat area now where the old mountain collapsed.

On our way up we also saw the landscape changing: at first there were many pines, but the higher we got, less and less trees could be seen. The scenery was more and more dominated by rocks in strange forms and different tones of colours. You could find everything from black over red to white.

Our last stop was at the Teide National Park. As soon as I got out of the bus I had the feeling of having left our planet earth. The rocks were formed in a way that should physically not be possible. For example the so-called “Finger of god”. The rock was as tall as a house and formed like a cudgel. The top was very broad and big and the bottom of the rock thin. It did not seem to be possible but the rock was not collapsing. When we started our little hike through the alien landscape more and more of these rocks could be seen. Some were tall like a skyscraper, others small but not less misshapen. There were some with deep cuts, others had wholes and on some you could see the different layers of the lava. But the best part of our little expedition was still there to come: our first solo. During that time we are not allowed to talk to or even see each other, and we have no watch to check the time. This solo started with a quote: “Grass doesn’t grow faster if you pull it.” After having found a good spot I sat down, crossed my legs and took the rucksack off my shoulders. I looked around. In front of me there was the plateau, the mountains, and next to me the “Finger of god” towering over me. The wind whistled slightly into my ears and the sun was warming my face. I thought back to the whole journey that lay behind me. The seasickness, everything I have learned, the new friends I have made and many more things. In the short period of three weeks we had sailed the whole North Sea, a part of the Atlantic Ocean, stopped in two different countries and learned how to sail our ship, the Thor Heyerdahl. So many things in such a short time. Because of that it is hard to realize everything, but it was a wonderful feeling thinking back to all those experiences.

After 20 minutes a loud yell came to my ears: the sign that the solo was over. In silence I walked back to the group and after another quote everyone was allowed to talk again. “Leave every place a little bit better than you have found it.” In the bus on our way back to the ship I thought back to the alien landscape of the Teide region with its strange rocks and the amazing view. It was such a wonderful, breathtaking and unique experience that I will surely never forget.